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TES 4: Oblivion Lore
What follows is a selection of lore about Oblivion and Cyrodiil as found in the
books of previous Elder Scrolls games.
Oblivion
Overview:
Oblivion too put it simply, is hell. Elder Scrolls players will
remember the Daedra; these are the inhabitants of Oblivion.
Oblivion is divided into numerous lands each of which is ruled by a
separate daedric prince. The princes(ses) are Sanguine, Boethiah, Molag Bal,
Sheogorath, Azura, Mephala, Clavicus Vile, Vaernima, Malacath, Hoermius-Mora,
Namira, Jyggalag, Nocturnal, Mehrunes Dagon, and Peryite.
Examples of Daedra are: Scamps, Clanfears, Ogrims and the Dremoras.
The daedra are organised into clans, though individual daedroth (the
singular of daedra) serve clans only by tradition.
Even a Daedroth�s loyalty to the daedric princes can waver. For
instance the dremora have not always served Mehrunes Dagon.
The daedra are immortal, they can be banished from the mortal plane
but they will never truly die.
Even the lowliest daedra views man with contempt. Yet they can hold
respect for individual men who defeat them.
Books with information on Oblivion or the Daedra:
On Oblivion
The
Waters Of Oblivion
Spirit of the Daedra
Invocation Of Azura
The Anticipations
Cyrodiil
Overview:
Cyrodiil is the cradle of Human Imperial high culture on Tamriel. It
is the largest region of the continent, and most is endless jungle. The Imperial
City is in the heartland, the fertile Nibenay Valley. The densely populated
central valley is surrounded by wild rain forests drained by great rivers into
the swamps of Argonia and Topal Bay. The land rises gradually to the west and
sharply to the north. Between its western coast and its central valley are
deciduous forests and mangrove swamps.
As was mentioned before Cyrodiil is the home of the imperials who have
come to control all of Tamriel. The strength of Cyrodiil rests largely on its
imperial legions who prevent their conquered lands from uprising.
The leadership of Cyrodiil rests in the hands of the emperor, Uriel
Septim, who maintains the powerful magic of Cyrodiil. Because of this the
emperor has become to be seen as a divine office, as is evidenced by the worship
of Tiber Septim who fathered the current dynasty of emperors.
Books with Information on Cyrodiil:
Frontier, Conquest, and Accommodation: A Social History of Cyrodiil
Provinces Of Tamriel
The Pocket Guide To The Empire
(links to the Imperial Library)
The Books Themselves
On Oblivion
by Morian Zenas
It is improper, however customary, to refer to the denizens of the dimension of
Oblivion as �demons.� This practice probably dates to the Alessian Doctrines of
the First Era prophet Marukh -- which, rather amusingly, forbade �trafficke with
daimons� and then neglected to explain what daimons were.
It is most probable that �daimon� is a misspelling or etymological rendition of
�Daedra,� the old Elven word for those strange, powerful creatures of uncertain
motivation who hail from the dimension of Oblivion. (�Daedra� is actually the
plural form; the singular is �Daedroth.�) In a later tract by King Hale the
Pious of Skyrim, almost a thousand years after the publication of the original
Doctrines, the evil machinations of his political enemies are compared to �the
wickedness of the demons of Oblivion... their depravity equals that of Sanguine
itself, they are cruel as Boethiah, calculating as Molag Bal, and mad as
Sheogorath.� Hale the Pious thus long-windedly introduced four of the Daedra
lords to written record.
But the written record is not, after all, the best way to research Oblivion and
the Daedra who inhabit it. Those who �trafficke with daimons� seldom wish it to
be a matter of public account. Nevertheless, scattered throughout the literature
of the First Era are diaries, journals, notices for witch burnings, and guides
for Daedra-slayers. These I have used as my primary source material. They are at
least as trustworthy as the Daedra lords I have actually summoned and spoken
with at length.
Apparently, Oblivion is a place composed of many lands -- thus the many names
for which Oblivion is synonymous: Coldharbour, Quagmire, Moonshadow, etc. It may
be correctly supposed that each land of Oblivion is ruled over by one prince.
The Daedra princes whose names appear over and over in ancient records (though
this is not an infallible test of their authenticity or explicit existence, to
be sure) are the afore-mentioned Sanguine, Boethiah, Molag Bal, and Sheogorath,
and in addition, Azura, Mephala, Clavicus Vile, Vaernima, Malacath, Hoermius (or
Hermaeus or Hormaius or Herma -- there seems to be no one accepted spelling)
Mora, Namira, Jyggalag, Nocturnal, Mehrunes Dagon, and Peryite.
From my experience, Daedra are a very mixed lot. It is almost impossible to
categorize them as a whole except for their immense power and penchant for
extremism. Be that as it may, I have here attempted to do so in a few cases,
purely for the sake of scholastic expediency.
Mehrunes Dagon, Molag Bal, Peryite, Boethiah, and Vaernima are among the most
consistently �demonic� of the Daedra, in the sense that their spheres seem to be
destructive in nature. The other Daedra can, of course, be equally dangerous,
but seldom purely for the sake of destruction as these five can. Nor are these
previous five identical in their destructiveness. Mehrunes Dagon seems to prefer
natural disasters -- earthquakes and volcanoes -- for venting his anger. Molag
Bal elects the employment of other daedra, and Boethiah inspires the arms of
mortal warriors. Peryite's sphere seems to be pestilence, and Vaernima's
torture.
In preparation for the next instalment in this series, I will be investigating
two matters that have intrigued me since I began my career as a Daedra
researcher. The first is on one particular Daedroth, perhaps yet another Daedra
prince, referred to in multiple articles of incunabula as Hircine. Hircine has
been called �the Huntsman of the Princes� and �the Father of Man-beasts,� but I
have yet to find anyone who can summon him. The other, and perhaps more
doubtful, goal I have is to find a practical means for mortal men to pass
through to Oblivion. It has always been my philosophy that we need only fear
that which we do not understand -- and with that thought in mind, I ever pursue
my objective.
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Waters of Oblivion
A hundred and twenty numbered ages in the void that fated folk had grown
deep-schooled in evil. Then the Bright Gods resolved to punish those faithless
spirits, and shatter the unruly caitiffs, those huge, unholy scathers, loathsome
to the Light. They repented exceedingly that they had gazed upon Oblivion, and
seen there the first of dark kin, and welcomed them as brothers and sisters.
The Principalities of Victory beheld how great was the wickedness of the wayward
spirits, and saw that they were bold in sin and full of wiles. They resolved
then to chasten the tribes of daedra, and smite darkkind with hammer and hand.
But ever shall Darkness contest the Light, and great were the Powers that
breathed the void and laid waste upon one another, and no oath might bind them,
so deep were they in envy and perfidy. For once the portals are opened, who
shall shut them upon the rising tide?
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Spirit of the
Daedra
How You Should Know Us
Death, Defeat, and Fear
We do not die. We do not fear death.
Destroy the Body, and the Animus is cast into The Darkness. But the Animus
returns.
But we are not all brave.
We feel pain, and fear it. We feel shame, and fear it. We feel loss, and
fear it. We hate the Darkness, and fear it.
The Scamps have small thoughts, and cannot fear greatly.
The Vermai have no thoughts, and cannot fear.
The Dremora have deep thoughts, and must master fear to overcome it.
The Clan Bond
We are not born; we have not fathers nor mothers, yet we
have kin and clans.
The clan-form is strong. It shapes body and thought.
In the clan-form is strength and purpose.
The Oath Bond
We serve by choice. We serve the strong, so that their
strength might shield us.
Clans serve by long-practice, but practice may change.
Dremora have long served Dagon but not always so.
Practice is secure when oath-bonds are secure, and trust is shared.
When oath-bonds are weak, there is pain, and shame, and loss, and Darkness,
and great fear.
How We Think About Man
Perhaps you find Scamps comic, and Vermai brutish.
How then do you imagine we view you humans?
You are the Prey, and we are the Huntsmen.
The Scamps are the Hounds, and the Vermai the Beaters.
Your flesh is sweet, and the chase is diverting.
As you may sometimes praise the fox or hare, admiring its cunning and speed,
and lamenting as the hounds tear its flesh, so do we sometimes admire our
prey, and secretly applaud when it cheats our snares or eludes pursuit.
But, like all worldly things, you will in time wear, and be used up. You
age, grow ugly, weak, and foolish. You are always lost, late or soon.
Sometimes the prey turns upon us and bites. It is a small thing. When
wounded or weary, we fly away to restore. Sometimes a precious thing is
lost, but that risk makes the chase all the sweeter.
Man's Mystery
Man is mortal, and doomed to death and failure and loss.
This lies beyond our comprehension - why do you not despair?
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Invocation of Azura
by Sigillah Parate
For three hundred years I have been a priestess of Azura, the Daedric Princess
of Moonshadow, Mother of the Rose, and Queen of the Night Sky. Every Hogithum,
which we celebrate on the 21st of First Seed, we summon her for guidance, as
well as to offer things of worth and beauty to Her Majesty. She is a cruel but
wise mistress. We do not invoke her on any Hogithum troubled by thunderstorms,
for those nights belong to the Mad One, Sheogorath, even if they do coincide
with the occasion. Azura at such times understands our caution.
Azura's invocation is a very personal one. I have been priestess to three other
Daedric Princes, but Azura values the quality of her worshippers, and the truth
behind our adoration of her. When I was a Dark Elven maid of sixteen, I joined
my grandmother's coven, worshippers of Molag Bal, the Schemer Princess.
Blackmail, extortion, and bribery are as much the weapons of the Witches of
Molag Bal as is dark magic. The Invocation of Molag Bal is held on the 20th of
Evening Star, except during stormy weather. This ceremony is seldom missed, but
Molag Bal often appears to her cultists in mortal guise on other dates. When my
grandmother died in an attempt to poison the heir of Firewatch, I re-examined my
faith in the cult.
My brother was a warlock of the cult of Boethiah-and from what he told me, the
Dark Warrior was closer to my spirit than the treacherous Molag Bal. Boethiah is
a Warrior Princess who acts more overtly than any other Daedroth. After years of
skulking and scheming, it felt good to perform acts for a mistress which had
direct, immediate consequences. Besides, I liked it that Boethiah was a Daedra
of the Dark Elves. Our cult would summon her on the day we called the Gauntlet,
the 2nd of Sun's Dusk. Bloody competitions would be held in her honor, and the
duels and battles would continue until nine cultists were killed at the hands of
other cultists. Boethiah cared little for her cultists-she only cared for our
blood. I do think I saw her smile when I accidentally slew my brother in a
sparring session. My horror, I think, greatly pleased her.
I left the cult soon after that. Boethiah was too impersonal for me, too cold. I
wanted a mistress of greater depth. For the next eighteen years of my life, I
worshipped no one. Instead I read and researched. It was in an old and profane
tome that I came upon the name of Nocturnal-Nocturnal the Night Mistress,
Nocturnal the Unfathomable. As the book prescribed, I called to her on her holy
day, the 3rd of Hearth Fire. At last I had found the personal mistress I had so
long desired. I strove to understand her labyrinthine philosophy, the source of
her mysterious pain. Everything about her was dark and shrouded, even the way
she spoke and the acts she required of me. It took years for me to understand
the simple fact that I could never understand Nocturnal. Her mystery was as
essential to her as savagery was to Boethiah or treachery was to Molag Bal. To
understand Nocturnal is to negate her, to pull back the curtains cloaking her
realm of darkness. As much as I loved her, I recognized the futility of
unraveling her enigmas. I turned instead to her sister, Azura.
Azura is the only Daedra Princess I have ever worshipped who seems to care about
her followers. Molag Bal wanted my mind, Boethiah wanted my arms, and Nocturnal
perhaps my curiosity. Azura wants all of that, and our love above all. Not our
abject slavering, but our honest and genuine caring in all its forms. It is
important to her that our emotions be engaged in her worship. And our love must
also be directed inward. If we love her and hate ourselves, she feels our pain.
I will, for all time, have no other mistress.
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The Anticipations
The Daedra are powerful ancestor spirits, similar in form and
substance to the Tribunal (Blessed Be Their Holy Names), but weaker in power,
and more arbitrary and removed from the affairs of mortals. In old times, the
Chimer worshiped the Daedra as gods. But they did not deserve this veneration,
for the Daedra harm their worshippers as often as help them.
The Advent of the Tribunal (Blessed Be Their Holy Names) changed this unhappy
state. By the Apotheosis, the Tribunal (Blessed Be Their Holy Names) became the
Protectors and High Ancestor Spirits of the Dunmer, and bade the Daedra to give
proper veneration and obedience. The Three Good Daedra, Boethiah, Azura, and
Mephala, recognized the Divinity of the Triune Ancestors (Blessed Be Their Holy
Names). The Rebel Daedra, Molag Bal, Malacath, Sheogorath, and Mehrunes Dagon,
refused to swear fealty to the Tribunal (Blessed Be Their Holy Names), and their
worshippers were cast out.
These Rebel Daedra thus became the Four Corners of the House of Troubles, and
they continue to plague our tranquility and tempt the unwary into Heresy and
Dark Worship. The Priests of the Temple remain ever vigilant for signs of the
Adversaries' return, sometimes aided by the loyal Three Good Daedra, who are
familiar with the wiles of their rebellious kin.
The Good Daedra are known to the Temple as the Anticipations, since they are the
early ancestral anticipations of the loving patronage of the Tribunal. The
Anticipations are the Daedra Lords Boethiah, Mephala, and Azura.
Boethiah is the Anticipation of Almalexia but male to her female. Boethiah was
the ancestor who illuminated the elves ages ago before the Mythic Era. He told
them the truth of Lorkhan's test, and defeated Auriel's champion, Trinimac.
Boethiah ate Trinimac and voided him. The followers of Boethiah and Trinimac
rubbed the soil of Trinimac upon themselves and changed their skins.
Mephala is the Anticipation of Vivec, but manifold and androgynous. Mephala
taught the Chimer to evade their enemies or kill them with secret murder. The
Chimer were few in those days and threatened on all sides. Mephala taught the
Chimer to build Houses. Later, Mephala created the Morag Tong.
Azura is the Anticipation of Sotha Sil, but female to his male. Azura was the
ancestor who taught the Chimer how to be different from the Altmer. Her
teachings are sometimes attributed to Boethiah. In the stories, Azura is often
encountered more as a communal progenitor of the race as a whole rather than as
an individual ancestor. She is associated with Dusk and Dawn, and is sometimes
called the Mother Soul. Azura's Star, also called the Twilight Star, appears
briefly at dawn and dusk low on the horizon below the constellation of the
Steed. Azura is associated with mystery and magic, fate and prophecy.
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Frontier, Conquest, and Accommodation: A Social History of Cyrodiil
University of Gwylim Press, 3E 344
Historians often portray the human settlement of Tamriel as a straightforward
process of military expansion of the Nords of Skyrim. In fact, human settlers
occupied nearly every corner of Tamriel before Skyrim was even founded. These
so-called "Nedic peoples" include the proto-Cyrodilians, the ancestors of the
Bretons, the aboriginals of Hammerfell, and perhaps a now-vanished Human
population of Morrowind. Strictly speaking, the Nords are simply another of
these Nedic peoples, the only one that failed to find a method of peaceful
accommodation with the Elves who already occupied Tamriel.
Ysgramor was certainly not the first human settler in Tamriel. In fact, in
"fleeing civil war in Atmora", as the Song of Return states, Ysgramor was
following a long tradition of migration from Atmora; Tamriel had served as a
"safety valve" for Atmora for centuries before Ysgramor's arrival. Malcontents,
dissidents, rebels, landless younger sons, all made the difficult crossing from
Atmora to the "New World" of Tamriel. New archeological excavations date the
earliest human settlements in Hammerfell, High Rock, and Cyrodiil at ME800-1000,
centuries earlier than Ysgramor, even assuming that the twelve Nord "kings"
prior to Harald were actual historical figures.
The Nedic peoples were a minority in a land of Elves, and had no choice but to
live peacefully with the Elder Race. In High Rock, Hammerfell, Cyrodiil, and
possibly Morrowind, they did just that, and the Nedic peoples flourished and
expanded over the last centuries of the Merethic Era. Only in Skyrim did this
accommodation break down, an event recorded in the Song of Return. Perhaps,
being close to reinforcements from Atmora, the proto-Nords did not feel it
necessary to submit to the authority of the Skyrim Elves. Indeed, the early Nord
chronicles note that under King Harald, the first historical Nord ruler (1E
113-221), �the Atmoran mercenaries returned to their homeland� following the
consolidation of Skyrim as a centralized kingdom. Whatever the case, the pattern
was set -- in Skyrim, expansion would proceed militarily, with human settlement
following the frontier of conquest, and the line between Human territory and
Elven territory was relatively clear.
But beyond this "zone of conflict", the other Nedic peoples continued to merge
with their Elven neighbors. When the Nord armies of the First Empire finally
entered High Rock and Cyrodiil, they found Bretons and proto-Cyrodiils already
living there among the Elves. Indeed, the Nords found it difficult to
distinguish between Elf and Breton, the two races had already intermingled to
such a degree. The arrival of the Nord armies upset the balance of power between
the Nedic peoples and the Elves. Although the Nords' expansion into High Rock
and Cyrodiil was relatively brief (less than two centuries), the result was
decisive; from then on, power in those regions shifted from the Elves to the
Humans.
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Provinces of
Tamriel
The Empire of Tamriel encompasses the nine Imperial provinces: Skyrim, High
Rock, Hammerfell, Summerset Isle, Valenwood, Elsweyr, Black Marsh, Morrowind,
and the ancient Imperial province itself, Cyrodiil. Morrowind was among the last
of the provinces to be integrated into the Empire, and because it was added by
treaty, and not by conquest, Morrowind retains exceptional power to define local
law by reference to ancient Great House precedents.
Skyrim, also known as the Old Kingdom or the Fatherland, was the first region of
Tamriel settled by humans from the continent of Atmora: the hardy, brave,
warlike Nords, whose descendants still occupy this rugged land. Though more
restrained and civilized than their barbarian ancestors, the Nords of the pure
blood still excel in the manly virtues of red war and bold exploration.
Hammerfell is primarily an urban and maritime province, with most of its
population confined to the great cities of Sentinel and Stros M'Kai and to other
small ports among the islands and along the coast. The interior is sparsely
populated with small poor farms and beast herds. The Redguard love of travel,
adventure, and the high seas has dispersed them as sailors, mercenaries, and
adventurers in ports of call throughout the Empire.
High Rock encompasses the many lands and clans of Greater Bretony, the Dellese
Isles, the Bjoulsae River tribes, and, by tradition, the Western Reach. The
rugged highland strongholds and isolated valley settlements have encouraged the
fierce independence of the various local Breton clans, and this contentious
tribal nature has never been completely integrated into a provincial or Imperial
identity. Nonetheless, their language, bardic traditions, and heroic legends are
a unifying common legacy.
The Summerset Isle is a green and pleasant land of fertile farmlands, woodland
parks, and ancient towers and manors. Most settlements are small and isolated,
and dominated by ruling seats of the local wizard or warlord. The Isle has few
good natural ports, and the natives are unwelcoming to foreigners, so the
ancient, chivalric high culture of the Aldmer is little affected by modern
Imperial mercantilism.
Valenwood is a largely uninhabited forest wilderness. The coasts of Valenwood
are dominated by mangrove swamps and tropical rain forests, while heavy
rainfalls nurture the temperate inland rain forests. The Bosmer live in timber
clanhouses at sites scattered along the coast and through the interior,
connected only by undeveloped foot trails. The few Imperial roads traverse vast
dense woodlands, studded with tiny, widely separated settlements, and carry
little trade or traffic of any kind.
The Khajiit of the southern Elsweyr jungles and river basins are settled city
dwellers with ancient mercantile traditions and a stable agrarian aristocracy
based on sugarcane and salt rice plantations. The nomadic tribal Khajiit of the
dry northern wastes and grasslands are, by contrast, aggressive and territorial
tribal raiders periodically united under tribal warlords. While the settled
south has been quick to adopt Imperial ways, the northern nomadic tribes cling
to their warlike barbarian traditions.
Most of the native Argonian population of Black Marsh is confined to the great
inland waterways and impenetrable swamps of the southern interior. There are few
roads here, and most travel is by boat. The coasts and the north-western upland
forests are largely uninhabited. For ages the Dunmer have raided Black Marsh for
slaves; though the Empire has made this illegal, the practice persists, and
Dunmer and Argonians have a long-standing and bitter hatred for one another.
Morrowind, homeland of the Dunmer peoples, is the northeastmost province of the
Tamrielic Empire. Most of the population is gathered in the high uplands and
fertile river valleys of central Morrowind, especially around the Inland Sea.
The island Vvardenfel is encircled by the Inner Sea, and is dominated by the
titanic volcano Red Mountain and its associated ash wastelands; most of the
island's population is confined to the relatively hospitable west and southwest
coast.
Cyrodiil is the cradle of Human Imperial high culture on Tamriel. It is the
largest region of the continent, and most is endless jungle. The Imperial City
is in the heartland, the fertile Nibenay Valley. The densely populated central
valley is surrounded by wild rain forests drained by great rivers into the
swamps of Argonia and Topal Bay. The land rises gradually to the west and
sharply to the north. Between its western coast and its central valley are
deciduous forests and mangrove swamps.
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